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Britt Erica Tunick is an award winning financial journalist who has spent the past 17 years writing about virtually every aspect of finance. She has mastered the art of boiling down complicated financial topics for readers to understand. |
Always keep track of your credit/debit card transactions and be cautious of any unfamiliar transactions, however minimal they might be. Identity Theft Alert: Why You Should Be Cautious When Shopping at Major Retailers By Britt Erica Tunick Home Depot, Target and DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse may seem to have little in common, but with millions of individual customers each, they are a tech savvy criminal’s dream. Not surprisingly, all three companies have had their databases hacked into, compromising the credit card numbers and personal details of countless shoppers at these stores. So what does that mean for consumers? Since it is unrealistic to avoid shopping at any major company likely to attract hackers, the best thing consumers can do is to pay attention to news of any such breaches. If you have shopped at a retailer whose database has been compromised, pay particular attention to any activity on the credit card you used at that store whether in person or online and be sure to immediately report any suspicious activity to your card issuer. And keep in mind that if you’ve heard about any such data breach on the news, you’re not the only one. Criminals who are always on the lookout for new scams are constantly looking for new ways to trick or scare consumers into handing over their credit card, banking or personal identification information. So if you’ve just heard that Home Depot’s database was compromised and you suddenly receive an e-mail alleging to be from Home Depot that offers to help protect your credit, be leery of any links in such an e-mail and NEVER provide sensitive information to any company that you haven’t directly contacted yourself. Beyond paying close attention to your credit card statements, which is something that should be done on a regular basis anyways, there are a few steps consumers can take to help protect their credit card or banking information.
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